


A Spark to Warm The Night

by I_Need_Fangirl_Therapy



Category: Sterek - Fandom, teen wolf - Fandom
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Alpha Derek, Alpha Derek Hale, Anchors, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Caring Stiles Stilinski, Comfort after nightmares, Derek Hale & Erica Reyes Friendship, Derek Hale & Isaac Lahey Friendship, Derek Has Nightmares, Derek has PTSD, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Erica Reyes & Stiles Stilinski Friendship, Fluff and Angst, Hale Pack, Hurt Derek Hale, Hurt/Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Isaac Lahey Has Nightmares, M/M, Mentioned Kate Argent, Mentioned Kate Argent/Derek Hale, Nightmares, Nightmares take a lot out of you, Past Kate Argent/Derek Hale, Sterek Angst, Sterek anchors, Stiles and Derek are anchors, Vernon Boyd & Derek Hale Friendship, aftermath of abuse, everyone has nightmares who we kidding, isaac Lahey Has PTSD, sterek, sterek fluff, typical kate warning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-05 07:15:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16805971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_Need_Fangirl_Therapy/pseuds/I_Need_Fangirl_Therapy
Summary: Nightmares aren't reality; and sometimes even the Big Bad Wolf needs reminding.





	A Spark to Warm The Night

**Author's Note:**

> Give me 2 hours to get the formating to look right, christ I'm sorry.

Pack life isn't so bad, but Derek gets along best with Isaac. They have a sort of understanding of each other. Derek and Isaac get along so well because they just want to be cared for, just want a family, just want their horrible nightmares to stop leaving them shaking awake in the darkness, hearts pounding. Isaac, incredibly cautiously, usually wakes Derek from his if he hears him frantically breathing downstairs. Derek shakes Isaac from his when he falls asleep anyplace and starts mumbling fearfully and curling into a ball. Erica and Boyd help Isaac, but they don't quite know how to help Derek, they don't really know enough and he's kinda scary, but they wake him when they're there. Or well, Boyd does. Erica quickly learns that she shouldn't ever wake Derek up from his nightmares. Getting scratched across the arm once by Derek, in a confused red eyed, growl filled, nightmare fueled panic- was enough. Derek apologizes about 45 times and buys her those purple heels from Target that she'd looked longingly at last week. Erica wonders who the fuck hurt Derek so badly. They've got that part of it all figured by the first nightmare they wake him from, while he pleads and whimpers and growls in his sleep. Someone really messed him up. "I'm sorry, You just... reminded me of... someone." Is all they get as an explanation while Erica's arm heals. So Erica tries to never be the only one available to wake him up. She tells Boyd and Isaac that she just can't, it only freaked Derek out more, and she got hurt and just, not a good plan. So there's always someone there with her. Until one day there isn't. Boyd is away for some sport thing and Isaac is with Scott; and she accidentally falls asleep on Derek's couch and wakes up in the dark. Smiling at the blanket she didn't fall asleep under. Her phone says its 1am. And then she hears Derek across the room. Quiet at first, she almost doesn't hear his breath coming too fast out of his lungs or the scared, soft mutterings that fall from his lips. But then she does, because he gets louder. And with every shuffle of blankets from the corner, with every desperate version of " _No_ " " _Please don't_ ," and " _ **Stop**_ " and every ever escalating whine, she freaks out harder. Knowing she's the last person who can actually help but not even knowing why. She fidgets. Forces herself not to move. The wolf in her fighting so hard to protect, to help her alpha. She taps her fingers, calls his name a few times, but it doesn't work, she texts the boys 3 times, but they don't answer. So, as Derek gets more distressed, frantically she texts the only person she knows to always be awake this late. 

Stiles.

" _Need help, at the loft. Please hurry._ " And the reply is instant; " _On my way_ " Then right after " _What's wrong?!_ " And Erica doesn't really know how to explain. So she sends " _I can't wake Derek up, but he's freaking out_ " And after 7 long minutes of calling Derek's name some more, which definitely is having the opposite effect, so she stops, she hears the jeep rumble to a stop in parking lot and Stiles stumble out quickly. She opens the door before he can even send the text to let him in and rushes him inside silently. Stiles' heart caves as he hears Derek, still whimpering in his bed, too deep into his nightmares for the door or their hushed, frantic whispers to wake him. "Why can't you do anything?" Stiles asks as he enters and begins to head towards Derek. Erica looks away as she whispers, "For some reason I make it worse, _way worse_. We don't really know why..." She trails off. And Stiles gets it then. He knows the truth. Or well, some of it at least. He's heard a small handful of terrible things, things Derek could barely speak aloud. Gets how Derek waking up to blonde hair and a pretty face would reflect his dreams too much, jar his already panicked brain into overdrive. So he nods, crossing the loft quickly and kneels beside Derek's bed, he's done this before, but it wasn't this bad. Derek had fallen asleep in Stiles' corner chair one night 2 weeks ago while they were researching the monster prowling the woods, leaving blood-less bodies with strange runes carved into them behind. Turns out it was a type of Redcap fairy thing and Stiles hated the fuckers. But Derek had fallen asleep, book in hand; sometime near 2, and Stiles had turned to ask him something only to hold back an _'awww'_ at how peaceful Derek looked. He let him sleep. By 2 the nightmares began, but they didn't last long. As soon as he heard Derek whimpering, and him muttering, no, _pleading -_ desperately behind him as he dreamed, Stiles was across the room in seconds. Gently nudging him awake, hand resting on Derek's arm while talking him down from the edge of a panic attack until Derek could breathe again. "It's only a dream, you're safe. Breathe, good. It's alright." He'd reassured Derek, who's whole body was shaking like a leaf in late November, his eyes wide and wild from the moment they'd opened. He'd made Derek some tea, like his mom would for him, not expecting Derek to stick around or accept his offer and surprised when he did. Stiles thought he may know who the nightmares were about, he had his suspicions at least, he had gathered enough pieces by now to know that Kate had tricked him, used him, and was at least part of why Derek was well, _Derek_. But this was different. This nightmare was clearly worse. They weren't just barely audible pleas and " _no's"_ mixed with growls and whines coming from Derek like before these were louder, even more terrified. Stiles flipped on Derek's beside light and knelt next to his bed. "Derek!" He called in just a bit past his normal volume, "Derek wake up." When that didn't work he looked back at Erica, stress written on both their faces and cautiously reached out a shaking hand, sliding his fingers into Derek's super soft hair. Damn what conditioner did the guy use?! Derek flinched and curled tighter into himself, but Stiles kept running his hand through his dark, slightly sweaty hair; voice soft, but not quiet, reassuring him. And Derek seemed to calm some at his efforts, whimpers tapering off to a less frantic pitch. "Derekkk, Derek! it's just a dream wake up, it's alright!" Stiles said, louder now; while he gave Derek's shoulder a soft push, then a rougher one, with his other hand. "Derek!" He half shouted with a final shove. That did the trick. Derek's eyes snapped open with a small snarl, faint red bleeding away as he jerked back, away from Stiles and sat up. Visibly shaking, trying to catch his breath. Stiles hand hung in the air for a split second, startled by Derek's snarl and sudden jerk into wakefulness, before he it fall onto the bed. "It's alright, you're safe, breathe, its okay." Stiles said softly from where he was knelt. Derek looked at him as he spoke, warm brown eyes meeting frightened green, then to Erica who was shifting on her feet nervously, but tiredly not far behind Stiles; nervously watching Derek regain control of himself. Not really sure what to do. Stiles looked back her. "I can handle this, it's alright." He told her, with a look that hopefully said, _'Give us some space, it'll be okay'_ And not _'Please leave you're utterly useless'_ or something like that. She nodded, saying she was here if they needed anything and headed upstairs to pass back out in Isaac's bed or at least give them some privacy. She knew that Stiles was the only one who could get to Derek, get him to calm down, get him to talk. She wondered when they'd finally admit they were hopelessly in gross sappy love. Honestly, she was ready to lock them in a closet together until they figured shit out. Stiles watched her climb the stairs for second before he turned back to Derek. Who had muttered something, but since he was sitting with his arms around his knees, his face hidden as he tried to calm his pounding heart and get his lungs to work, it didn't sound like real words. Stiles leaned further unto the bed, "What?" He asked softly. Derek mumbled something that sounded very much like a shaky "I'm sorry." And Stiles swears he hears his heart shatter right there on the floor. _No._ Derek had nothing to be sorry about. Dear god, no; this wasn't his fault, and Stiles was gonna tell him that until he turned blue in the face if he had to. Without another thought he climbed up onto the bed beside Derek, who lifted his head looking stunned, and when he did Stiles had to resist the incredible urge to wipe the tear tracks from his perfect cheeks. He let out a long breath before he spoke, fingers fiddling with a loose thread on the knee of his grey and black plaid pajama pants. He turned to Derek, who was still watching him, curious, but looking so vulnerable that it hurt Stiles to hold his gaze. But he did. "Don't you dare apologize." He said firmly. And Derek's ridiculous eyebrows shot up just a smidge before he looked away with a small exhale. Without thinking Stiles reached out, his fingers coming to rest lightly on the top of Derek's arm where it was wrapped around his knees to get his full attention back. He felt the muscles tense beneath his finger tips, felt the slight trembling Derek was desperately trying to reign in, as Derek turned his head back toward Stiles, startled out of his thoughts by the faint touch. But to Stiles' surprise Derek didn't pull his arm away, just let out a ragged sort of breath and wiped his other hand across his eyes. But made no indication that he wanted Stiles to move his hand where he had started to trace soothing little swirls on his arm as he ran his fingers up and down, in hopes to calm the shaking Stiles could still feel. When Derek didn't say anything he tried again. "You don't have to be sorry, you don't need to apologize for this. It's not your fault, none of this is your fault and you don't need to feel ashamed." Stiles looked down at his hand still tracing patterns into Derek's skin and took a breath, he'd rushed all of that out in one go. He looked back up to find Derek's face crumbling. "Hey, no, no, shhh, Derek it's okay, it's alright." But all his reassurances had seemed to have the opposite effect. Derek curled into a tighter ball, shaking his head before burying it in his arms. _"It's my fault they're dead."_ he whispered, voice breaking on the last word as he cried. _Shit, shitfuck_ okay. Stiles could handle this, taking care of people was second nature, he drew in a steadying breath and made a choice. Slowly, he closed the short distance between them, and raised his arm, setting it down tentatively around Derek's still trembling shoulders. For a second they both froze, Derek's whole body going still, muscles tense. And Stiles was afraid he'd crossed a line. Then, right as Stiles was about to move away and apologize profusely for a year, Derek leaned into him, his head resting softly on Stiles shoulder. Stiles let out a breath he didn't even know he'd been holding and held Derek close, wrapping his other arm around the shuddering wolf as he sobbed harder, his face hidden under Stiles chin. "It's not your fault Derek, Its not." Stiles whispered into Derek's hair where it tickled his nose. Stiles reached up and ran his other hand through Derek's hair, desperate to soothe him, muttering softly that he was safe, that it was alright, trying to get him to breathe evenly. And slowly Derek calmed down, exhaustion setting in after feeling so much and crying so hard. Nightmares really take it out of you, Stiles knew that well. Slowly, sobs turned to sniffles and his full body shaking became the faintest tremor, and by the time he was breathing normally again he was nuzzling his face into Stiles shoulder without really registering he was doing it, while Stiles' drew patterns through his hair, trailed fingers along the base of his scalp, his temple, behind his ear. He was surrounded by the warmth and calming scent of Stiles, tension melting away, and he could finally breathe again, could finally close his eyes without seeing flames dancing behind is eyelids, or vicious smiles and cold green eyes. Derek started to drift off as Stiles rambled into his ear, the reassurances had turned to things about Marvel and facts about woolly-bear caterpillars as Derek had calmed down and relaxed. Stiles could only hold half asleep Derek up for so long, and soon he eased them down onto the bed, and Derek only protested for a single huff before letting himself be snuggled further against Stiles side, too exhausted and warm to resist. Stiles continued to rub circles on his shoulder and run his fingers through Derek's hair and Derek fell asleep to Stiles voice soft in his ear, feeling safer than he had in years. Stiles stretched to turn off the lamp as soon as he was certain Derek was sleeping, but continued to caress his hair. They stayed that way, until the sky began to lighten and Stiles drifted off to sleep too.

And for the first time in a long time Derek slept without a single nightmare.


End file.
